The U.S. Naval Academy will join D1A's Mid-South Conference this coming fall, making what is already the toughest conference in the college game even more difficult.

The addition of Navy will make this a six-team conference, with defending D1A champion Life, defending USA Rugby 7s champion Lindenwood, Arkansas State, Davenport, and Clemson also in the group. As a result, the format of the league will change from each team playing the other twice to a series of single games—each team plays the other five once.

Navy will play two games in the fall, against Lindenwood and Davenport. This is an important aspect of the schedule, as Davenport has long asked to have more fall league games to make dealing with the winter weather in Michigan a little easier. Adding Navy could go a long way to keeping Davenport in this conference.

For Navy, head coach Gavin Hickie said this is what his program needs.

"The best lesson we got all season was our loss to Life University in the fall," Hickie said. "We lost that game but we came away with an understanding of the level we all need to get to. Being in the Mid-South gives us a chance to win a conference and get a D1A playoff spot, or, if we can't do that, we get the high-level games we need to earn an at-large spot. It's also what we need—the next step—for our development."

Mid-South Conference Commissioner Colton Cariaga, who is also the head coach for Life University, echoed Hickie's thoughts on the move.

"The addition of Navy Rugby into the D1A Mid-South Conference is a definitive win-win," Cariaga said in a statement. "Navy Rugby has the competitive track record, top-class facilities, and every intention of growing the game in their community. All this in addition to an institutional profile that is matched by few. We are pleased and honored to welcome the Midshipmen into the Mid-South Conference.”

Joining the Mid-South will help Navy expand its season, and Hickie said that his B and C teams will play in the Cardinals Conference in D2. The entire program will play 28 games in the fall.

"The schedule allows us to keep our games with the other service academies and retain our longstanding rivalry games such as Penn State," Hickie said.

This weekend, Navy No. 8 Connor McNerney will officially receive his Rudy Scholz Award as the top men's college player in the country. McNerney will serve as an assistant coach for Navy Rugby in the fall before joining the U.S. Navy's Special Warfare program in Coronado, CA, at the end of the year.